New research conducted by NBS has revealed a surge in construction professionals using tech for environmental impact assessment.
Professionals tasked with embodied carbon reporting have led the way, with three-fifths now leveraging digital technology, a significant increase from two-fifths in 2023.
The construction industry faces increasing pressure to demonstrate measurable progress toward sustainability goals and the NBS Digital Construction Report 2025 proves tech has emerged as both enabler and auditor of these efforts. Based on responses from over 550 construction professionals, it demonstrates that sustainability is now shifting from an industry aspiration to part of everyday practice, with just one in seven not using digital technologies for these assessments.
Tech use for environmental assessment has accelerated across all key metrics. Three-fifths of professionals have used it for embodied carbon, energy and water demand assessment, a rise from two-fifths in 2023. In addition, half now use digital tools for lifecycle analysis, up from one-third in NBS’ 2023 survey.
Nearly 90% of professionals now concur that digital technologies are having a positive environmental impact, an almost 20% jump over 2023’s findings.
Agreement also exists regarding AI's potential to improve sustainability, with seven in ten recognising its reliability. Despite AI’s considerable carbon footprint, professionals are valuing the technology’s impact on sustainability reporting, in particular its ability to rapidly analyse product data, check compliance with environmental standards, and model lifecycle impacts.
The result indicates that construction is finally embracing digital technology and properly harnessing its potential to improve and enhance processes. Half of respondents now believe the industry is no longer lagging behind other sectors, compared to just one-quarter in 2023.
This confidence extends to environmental impact, with construction professionals increasingly embracing digital technologies for sustainability reporting.
Dr Lee Jones, Head of Sustainability at Hubexo, said: “The ability to provide accurate, real-time environmental data throughout a project's lifecycle is increasingly valued by construction professionals, as well as investors and regulators. Digital tools enable this transparency whilst also providing the insights needed to optimise environmental performance during design and construction phases.”
“Our latest report reveals a dramatic acceleration in these practices, with digital technologies now widely adopted for environmental impact assessment, and they’re clearly making a big difference when it comes to embodied carbon reporting.”
The full NBS Digital Construction Report 2025 is available for download now, here.
